Irving staff drafts plan to redevelop aging area that once thrived

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ROSE BACA/neighborsgo staff photographer

Steve Reed (left), assistant director of Development Services, and Troy Wynne, senior planner, stand along Belt Line Road in Irving. City staff members are working on a 28-year, $10.6 million plan to redevelop a 4.3 mile stretch of the corridor from Shady Grove Road to State Highway 161.

After 20 years in business, Half Price Books closed its store in the shopping center. The bookstore had been a neighbor to Pardo’s bakery for the last seven years. On the opposite side, the space formerly occupied by Football Fish Seafood Restaurant is for lease, too.

Now, city staff members are working on a 28-year, $10.6-million plan to redevelop a 4.3-mile stretch of North Belt Line Road from Shady Grove Road to State Highway 161. If successful, Pardo and other store owners will see aesthetic improvements that may help to bring in new businesses.

“Irving has to keep moving forward and refreshing our infrastructure,” said Irving mayor pro tem Gerald Farris, who serves as chairman of the city’s planning and development committee.

An entrance point to the city, the 10-mile Belt Line corridor runs north and south through Irving, connecting it to surrounding communities.

City officials say about 45,000 cars traverse Belt Line every day, making it one of the city’s busiest roadways.

According to a draft of the Belt Line Corridor Unified Redevelopment Plan, improvements would enhance street lights and poles, bury power lines at intersections, provide landscaping and façade enhancements, and improve curb reduction and parking lots.

“It’s not an unattractive corridor,” said Steven Reed, assistant director of development services for the city. “But much of it is dated.”

Annual bond-election funds would pay for the project. Officials envision a proposed Tax Increment Finance District would prompt private investment from business owners to revamp their properties, many of which predate the city’s current commercial design guidelines.

Senior planner Troy Wynne said the incentive program would be similar to one already implemented along Irving Boulevard.

Businesses that see their city make improvements are motivated to make upgrades themselves, Farris said.

“It’s having pride in your city,” he said.

The Irving City Council has yet to approve the plan, which was originally set for presentation in May or June, but was pushed back.

City staff has outlined the plan to the council’s Planning and Development Committee, and the city hosted a meeting at the Irving Mall in April to garner support and answer questions from business owners along the corridor.

Reed said city staff is scheduled to present the updated plan to the committee Thursday. At that time, council members and staff will discuss the creation of a Tax Increment Financing District. Wynne said details on incentives still need to be worked out. He said initial focus is on enhancements to the public right-of-way, such as medians, through capital improvement program funding.

Half Price Books’ exit follows Barnes and Noble’s bow-out last December from the Irving Mall. At the same time, the bookstore chain closed its MacArthur Park store in Las Colinas.

As the anchor of the corridor at Belt Line Road and State Highway 183, the mall will be a key player in the plan, Reed said.

“The Irving Mall was state-of-the-art in the 1970s, when it was built,” Reed said. “But it lacks the landscaping and a lot of amenities you see in modern shopping centers. We want to raise the appearance of all the properties of the corridor over a period of time.”

J.C. Penney and Mervyns both left the mall — owned by Indianapolis, Ind.-based Simon Property Group — in the mid-2000s. Dillard’s recently turned its store into a clearance store. A Simon spokesperson declined to comment on the city’s plan to redevelop the Belt Line corridor, saying it was too early.

John Wang’s Empress of China restaurant sits across the street from the mall. In 1982, his family opened its restaurant. At the time, Wang said, North Belt Line was the city’s hottest area.

“It’s different — very different — now compared to then,” Wang said.

Now, fewer people are coming to the mall.

“Weekdays and weeknights, the parking lot is empty,” he said.

Meanwhile, in the last year, AMC Entertainment re-signed its lease for its 14-screen theater at the mall, extending it to 2025. In June, the company began a $5.75 million project to renovate AMC Cinemas 14 with recliner seating and a bar.

The Irving City Council approved the company’s plans at its July 25 meeting.

George Patterson, AMC Entertainment senior vice president of food and beverage, said the project should be completed by the end of September. He said the new concept is intended to draw more adults back to the movies.

The Irving location is in the first wave of 20 theaters to be chosen for the renovation. Eventually, Patterson said, all of the company’s 343 theaters will be revamped.

AMC is funding $4.75 million for the project, and Simon is contributing $1 million, Patterson said.

“It’s been a gradual thing,” Farris said of changes at the mall. “With Irving Mall being a legacy mall, they constantly have to reinvent themselves.”

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